If your child is potty trained but he continues to wet the bed at night, you’re not alone. About 15 percent of children wet the bed after age 3, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. For the most part, bedwetting in children is considered a natural and transient part of development rather than a medical problem.
Normal Bedwetting
Children commonly wet their beds as often as twice a week for up to a year after they have been toilet trained, according to BabyCenter.com. As a result, most parents don’t have a reason to be concerned if their 5-year-olds don’t always stay dry at night. Recognizing the need to urinate while sleeping is an ability that develops over time.
Causes
A child may wet the bed at night if his bladder is too small to accommodate the amount of urine produced at night, he may sleep so deeply that he doesn’t awaken to his body’s signals or he may still be learning bladder control, according to MedlinePlus. Occasionally, bedwetting results from emotions and tensions that require attention, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. A child who starts to wet the bed after several months of nighttime dryness may be dealing with insecurities over life changes, such as moving into a new house, the loss of a loved one or the birth of a new sibling.
What to Do
Treat your child’s bedwetting as natural and insignificant and don’t pressure or punish her when it happens, according to BabyCenter.com. She should eventually develop the capacity to stay dry all night or wake up to use the bathroom when necessary. In the meantime, make sure her bedding is protected with a plastic sheet, consider giving her absorbent underpants, encourage her to get up when she recognizes her dampness and consistently change her bedding and her pajamas, says BabyCenter.com. Although some devices and treatment programs promise to cure bedwetting, the American Academy of Pediatrics warns that many of their claims are false. Discuss your options with a pediatrician if you are thinking about treating the bedwetting.
Outcome
Bedwetting children typically experience fewer wet nights with some fluctuations, until they outgrow it completely, says BabyCenter.com. This process may taper off so gradually, though, that the process could take up to couple of years.
Considerations
If your child consistently wets the bed after age 6, he drinks fluid in excessive amounts or he has been showing strange behavioral changes, such as becoming unusually withdrawn, take him to see a pediatrician, urges MedlinePlus. Also see a doctor if your child “dribbles” urine on a regular basis, strains while urinating, complains of pain or burning while urinating, has cloudy or pink urine or a rash or redness in the genital area, says BabyCenter.com, as these symptoms typically indicate health problems.
